THE ROAD AHEAD ith new opportunities comes new directions. That As industry was the overriding theme of the 2015 Women in rebounds, W Commercial Construction & Facilities Retreat, held at executives The Hotel Monaco in , Aug. 6–9. The attendees, the perfect blend of the industry’s leading vendors and end users, spoke seek more positively about the road ahead and where the opportunities can opportunities continue to take an industry that is trending upward. As the commercial construction industry moves full steam ahead, women executives spoke openly about the successes and challenges facing all sectors of the marketplace. The three-day event featured a roundtable discussion, along with a series of networking opportu- nities, including a little free-fall flying in the iFLY Indoor SkyDiving facility. Following is the first installment of our Commercial Construction & Renovation’s Wom- en’s Retreat coverage, including a look at our Friday afternoon forum. For more information, visit us at www.ccr-mag.com.

38 COMMERCIAL CONSTRUCTION & RENOVATION — SEPTEMBER : OCTOBER 2015 Heidi Bendiksen Samra Savioz Susan Lloyd Heidi’s Brooklyn Deli Marco Contractors Family Dollar Founder/Vice President Director of Business Project Manager Development Construction Process & Design Team

Lori Naas Karen Caroline Roberts Whataburger MacCannell Chipotle Manager, 3rd Party Services The McIntosh Group Executive Director Business Development

Penny Czarra Gabriele Melanie Gifford AC Tech Lawrence Sargenti Architects President & Director Chatham Lodging Trust Business Developement Director of Project Manageer Management

Kelli Buhay Heather Lindsay Jenny Feng Retail Maintenance Academy Sports Behr Process Corporate Specialists & Outdoors PRO Product and Director of Business Manager of Direct Channel Manager Developement Construction Projects

Jenee Naples Diana Rico Rabiah Reyome Massey LaZerCaD GNP Development Heidi’s Brooklyn Deli Chief Developement Director, Project Solutions Director of Franchise and Officer Vendor Relations

Heidi Vassalotti Colleen Biggs Cha Nye Farley Crossville The Little Gym Strategic Accounts International Director of Facilities Real Estate & and Procurement Developement Manager

Dawn Henning Maria Torres Erin Wilson General Shale Pizza Studio Imagilux Director of Retail Construction & Ops Inside Sales Manager Marketing Coordinator

Gabriela Settles Cherisse Regnart Grace Daly Office Depot/Office Max Re-AL Shop Talk 360 Senior Category Manager, Principal Indirect Procurement

SEPTEMBER : OCTOBER 2015 — COMMERCIAL CONSTRUCTION & RENOVATION 39 THE ROAD AHEAD

CCR: Tell us a little about yourself. Heidi Bendiksen, Heidi’s Brooklyn Deli: We started 21 years ago here in Denver, because when we moved here, there was nothing to eat except steak. Now there’s good food. W​e’ve added five corporate stores over a 10-year period, and now realize that to grow we’re going to have to start . We currently have 18 locations and we’re ready to grow. We’re seeking national vendors to work with because we do have stores out of state.

Samra Savioz, Marco Contractors: Marco Contractors is a national general contractor that specializes in retail and general commercial construction. We have been in business for over 37 years, with headquarters in Warrendale Pa., a suburb of Pitts- burgh. Our western office is in San Francisco. We have a presence in all 50 states. Marco is also licensed and registered to build projects in all 50 U.S. states. We have more than 60 full time superintendents and nine full time project managers. Marco is financially strong and finishes projects on-time and on-budget. We’re looking to contin- ue to sustain growth and are interested in maintaining long term relationships and creating new relationships with clients as well. At Marco, we work as a team and performance builds our business.

Susan Lloyd, Family Dollar: Family Dollar has about 8,000 stores representing our area of expertise in ADA consulting. We are working in 46 of the continental . Basically, my team oversees to make retailers and architects more aware; train and educate them the design of our buildings, as far as picking products, what they look and work with retail clients nationwide. like, how they flow, keeping them energy efficient and sustainable. We oversee processes for the construction side of the company. Caroline Roberts, Chipotle: Domestically and internationally, my team handles designing construction facilities, procurement, sustain- Lori Naas, Whataburger Restaurants LLC: We have about 700 ability, property management and development support. We currently restaurants across the South, from to Jacksonville, Fla. I have about 185 people on our team. manage the 3rd Party Services – 13 services overall. Penny Czarra, AC Tech: We work around the country and over- Karen MacCannell, The McIntosh Group: We are a national seas. We manufacture and support special epoxies and coatings architecture firm that specializes in retail and restaurant, we are for concrete and metal. We work with specifiers, general contrac- licensed in every state, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico. I am tors, concrete contractors, and flooring installers. Gradually, we’re getting into the design-build community, where we assist them in avoiding problems before they occur. No one wants to com- promise their new flooring system because of moisture, salts, or contamination in the concrete substrate. We’re big on promoting innovation on the construction site and in troubleshooting the problems that always arise when translating “specifications” into actual performance on the job. We invest heavily in technical support for our custom- ers and the industry at large.

Gabriele Lawrence, Chatham Lodging & Trust: We’re a real estate investment trust that specializes in premium branded, upscale, select service hotels. We work with all brands including Marriott, Starwood, Hilton, InterContinental & Hyatt Hotels. We

40 COMMERCIAL CONSTRUCTION & RENOVATION — SEPTEMBER : OCTOBER 2015 ImagiLux ULTRA-THIN LED PANELS

Be Creative. Backlight Anything. Bring bright, even light to any translucent material. From onyx and glass tile to graphics, display lighting and more. Call 541.228.3650

Expert engineers and experienced designers are Made in the USA. Quote today. Ship in a week. ready to help you realize your creative vision. ImagiLuxLED.com Imagilux custom LED panels.

A Division of

CIRCLE NO. 22 THE ROAD AHEAD

currently have about 200 hotels in the Seeking product outside of our primary United States only. market can be difficult. We’re a small, closely held company so we are seeking regional and Melanie Gifford, Sargenti Architects: national vendors. We’ve been in business for about 17 years. We are an architecture firm that predomi- Diana Rico, LaZerCaD: We’re an as-built data nantly do retail and are slowly getting into collection business that was started in 2011 in hospitality. We have offices in Los Angeles, Los Angeles. There are a lot of as-built surveying Paramus, New Jersey and . companies out there, but we deliver in a format that allows you to have access to your data on a Kelli Buhay, Retail Maintenance mobile device anywhere in the United States. Specialists: We’re a 13 year-old facility maintenance company that covers the gam- Rabiah Reyome, GNP Development: ut as far as maintenance, PM work, HVAC, GNP Development is a boutique real estate electrical, plumbing, carpentry rollout and and investment firm that provides a holistic special projects. development approach, managing project and/or land investment processes through- Heather Lindsay, Academy Sports & out all phases of the sale. GNP focuses on Outdoors: Academy Sports and Outdoors is value creation through strategic acquisitions one of the nation’s largest sporting goods, out- and build-to-suit developments. Successfully door and lifestyle retailers in the country with managing client relationships and ensuring 201 locations in the Southeast United States. the company and client goals are aligned guides our team in delivering successful Jenny Feng, Behr Process Corporation: innovative and cost effective strategies. I work for Masco Coatings Group which has two of the top architectural coatings brands– Heidi Vassalotti, Crossville: Crossville is Behr and Kilz. Our brands have been around the largest domestic manufacturer of por- for over 60 years. Behr grew up on the Do- celain tile, American owned and operated, it-Yourself (DIY) side of the business, which and based in Crossville, Tenn. I manage our means our quality needs to match up to the strategic accounts nationally, specializing in performance expectation of consumers who retail and hospitality. might not have much experience painting. Contractors have also depended on BEHR Colleen Biggs, The Little Gym In- & KILZ products for consistent quality and ternational: We’re coming up on our 40- reliability for decades. year anniversary next year. We offer gym- To catapult from this established base nastics programs for children four months of loyal DIY clients, Behr has in recent years to 12 years of age. We’ve partnered with made additional investments to pursue and a few great partners this year, including focus on the professional market in a bigger Nickelodeon, LEGO and Kindermusik. We way, primarily the commercial segment, have 207 currently open in the United nationwide. We have 15 distribution centers States and Canada, and more than 300 and is supported by The Home Depot’s around the world. 2,000 store locations. Our strength is help- ing our clients manage their paint programs, Cha Nye Farley, Smashburger: I run through superior use of color renderings, the facilities and procurement for Smash- writing national specifications and conduct- burger, which is a fast-casual restaurant ing job walks. Our Color Lab ensures that with more than 300 corporate and fran- color accuracy, and state of the art custom chise restaurants operating in 32 states color matching capabilities contribute sub- and 5 countries. stantially to our competitive advantage. Dawn Henning, General Shale: We Jenee Naples Massey, Heidi’s Brooklyn are one of the largest manufacturers of Deli: We’re seeking national partners in con- brick, block and stone for residential and struction, design and facilities maintenance. commercial applications in North America.

42 COMMERCIAL CONSTRUCTION & RENOVATION — SEPTEMBER : OCTOBER 2015 »CCRS 2016 SPONSOR CIRCLE NO. 23 THE ROAD AHEAD

Our parent company, Wienerberger, is the world’s largest brick manufacturer, is based in Austria. We’re headquartered in East and have about 50 locations throughout the country. We also have a connection of about 600 distributors throughout North America.

Maria Torress, Pizza Studio: Pizza Studio is a Los Angeles-based fast casual, build your own pizza concept that has been in business for close to three years. Our concept offers a variety of artisanal crusts, sauces, meats and fresh ingredients at an affordable price. We also work closely with the community by supporting local artists and featuring their artwork on our Starving Artist’s wall. We currently have 33 locations.

Erin Wilson, Imagilux: We are based in Eugene, Ore. We man- ufacture ultra-thin LED light panels in custom sizes and shapes. Our panels are used to backlight translucent materials – pretty much anything from signage and graphics to decor and architec- tural accents. We’ve been in business for about nine years.

Gabriela Settles, Office Depot/Office Max: About two years ago, we completed a merger with Office Max, which is one of the main things I’ve been focusing on. We’re integrating all of the sup- plies and services for those two companies. We’re headquartered in Boca Raton, Fla.

Cherisse Regnart, Re-AL: We’re an architectural firm based out of San Diego. We specialize in nationwide tenant improvements. We can work with corporations that are just doing a couple of stores a year or 50 to 200 stores a year.

CCR: What are some of the biggest things on your to-do list? Behr’s Feng: As a product manager, I work very closely with our 200 chemists (many with PHDs) to build the highest performing liquid in the can. I also make sure we meet the most stringent environmental and safety guidelines. Our corporate office is in Southern California, where the most rigorous environmental standards in the industry exist. Behr takes pride in sustainable manufacturing practices. In fact, our paint cans are made of recycled material and more than 40 BEHR products have achieved UL Environment’s GREENGUARD’s prestigious GREENGUARD Gold Products Cer- tification. This means that these products can be used to earn credits in the U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED Green Building Rating Systems. Our breadth and depth of product lines provide solutions for every surface in the commercial segment and beyond. We listen very closely to our clients’ needs and continue to innovate our products and services to meet or exceed their expectations.

Naples Franchising’s Naples Massey: Our big focus is finding turkey solutions for all of our franchisees in every market. We are also working to source materials that compliment our sustainable

44 COMMERCIAL CONSTRUCTION & RENOVATION — SEPTEMBER : OCTOBER 2015 Our large format porcelain panels are larger, leaner, and stronger with a single tile of Laminam® by Crossville at 1m x 3m. Cut it as large—or small—as you like, and tile over your existing tile for an easy remodel. At just 3 to 5.6mm thick, you can be courageous and think bigger about your next project. Crossville tile is distributed by Longust in Northern California. Please visit CrossvilleInc.com to find your nearest showroom.

CrossvilleInc.com | 931-456-3136 CIRCLE NO. 24 THE ROAD AHEAD

what our clients’ needs are. In January, I became the Chief Development Officer and took over operations and key account management. The owner is much more involved on the technology side, which is what he does best, and I’m involved in the day-to- day running of the company. This has allowed us to launch new technology, improve QA and operations, increase capacity and concentrate on our client needs.

GNP Development’s Reyome: My role is project management consultant, so I work with different healthcare leaders in the marketplace, I’m securing medical office buildings, which includes negotiating the contracts, sourcing facility management services, etc. I think the challenge is that the certain premiums doctors were paid are decreasing. That means they are less able to lease medical office space as much as they did. They don’t have the same type of revenue coming in, so we’re working with that kind of benchmark trying to understand the portfolio. What makes sense best from a medical office building’s standpoint and how do we mirror that and keep it going to build on additional medical office buildings throughout the United States?

Crossville’s Vassalotti: My role within Crossville has evolved quite a bit over the past year or so. When I think about my to-do list I tend to work in two capacities. My primary focus is with direct products. For Example, our flooring is 40 percent re-purposed client relationships. My secondary responsibility is for training and porcelain tile. The paint on our walls is zero VOC paint. educating our sales forces as it relates to retail and hospitality. I We’re trying to figure out how we’re going to merge all of those am also a LEED AP, which means I enjoy promoting the continu- different avenues together to make it easy for our franchisees. We’re ous improvement of our sustainability processes and how these family-owned, but we’re considering corporate and franchise mixes contribute to our client’s needs. My favorite part of my role in either again, so we want to know how to build our infrastructure and have scenario though is being able to leverage how unique and flexible departments that aren’t too big but do their jobs well. We’re looking Crossville can be to provide clients customized solutions that go to outsource things like project management, but also create our above and beyond their expectations. own departments. So it’s a lot of navigating for us – a learning curve.

CCR: Tell us about your airport project at the Denver International Airport, Terminal B. Naples Franchising’s Naples Massey: It is literally a mile walk there and back. But we were there for seven years and it’s a beautiful partnership. We have Concessions International, a national concessionaire for airports, as our franchisee. They rep- resented us very well, so we were awarded another seven-year lease in the airport. If anyone knows airports, that’s very difficult to do. We’re proud of that. Part of that was completely rebuilding our space. We had to close for a few months, go through all of the red tape and the inertia of the airport setting. It ended up being delayed a year and a half because of the way the world works out there. We had to really be patient while sourcing new vendors, working with the architects to re-do drawings, etc. But we got the job done with the support of great vendor relationships. It’s a beautiful space – about 980 square feet. It’s our smallest location and our busiest location.

LaZerCaD’s Rico: For us, the key is a quality client deliverable and maintaining client relationships. It’s about understanding

46 COMMERCIAL CONSTRUCTION & RENOVATION — SEPTEMBER : OCTOBER 2015 For RISK MANAGEMENT, you always have choices!

Got TRENCHING scheduled in your next tenant improvement project? You can wait 30+ days for the concrete fill to cure & dry. Or, you can “get on with it” 3-5 days after the concrete fill! Accelerate project completion schedules. Achieve FULL 100% RH, 25# MVER and 14pH protection for final flooring. Meet industry and manufacturer standards! See our “SUBSTRATE SLEUTHS” column on page 27! Please call 1-800-607-5523 for IMMEDIATE SUPPORT! Go to actechperforms.com/news for TECHNICAL PROTOCOL!

CIRCLE NO. 25 THE ROAD AHEAD

The Little Gym’s Biggs: So, this year, things are starting to change and people the focus of the company is on owner are starting to build again, we’re nowhere engagement and simplification. We’re near where we thought we would be as far introducing a couple of new programs, as new build and construction in general, so however, our focal point would be to simpli- right now, my job is brand recognition. There fy how our Franchisees do business with us are three main manufacturers of masonry and how their customers do business with materials in the country – we’re No. 2. them. We have several initiatives in place to Obviously, we’re trying to take away a make that happen. It is very important to us little bit of wall share from our competitors, that we are delivering a quality product to but we’re also trying to gain some wall our consumers. In doing that we want to be share from other exterior cladding like siding able to engage and build relationships with and stucco. We want builders to use more the parents to influence their lives and their masonry, and more concrete. We’re also try- children’s lives. Much of our focus in 2016 ing to grow commercially. We’re well known will be delivering the tools necessary to the residentially, but we’re trying to gain more Franchisees to be able to do just that. traction in commercial projects, commercial buildings, and things of that nature. Smashburger’s Farley: My to-do list is Before I came here more than four very divided. I have procurement and facili- years ago, they had very little strategic ties on two separate lists. Procurement is al- marketing. We’ve started doing more market ways going to be to try to find bigger, better research, which has helped make some equipment that’s cheaper, lasts longer and of the decisions easier. We’ve had a real has more advantages. That’s always our bit. change in our focus over the last five years. We’re always looking for new vendors, trying It all centers on our mindset and growth, and to spend time to cultivate new relationships. how we are trying to do things in a more The facilities part of my job takes proactive way. It has been a lot of fun. Today, more time. It is a totally different animal. our to-do list is getting back on track and Take a restaurant – everything that’s in that growing our brand. restaurant is pretty much my problem. I can have real estate help me, but it’s still my Pizza Studio’s Torres: Eighty-percent problem. In my facilities department, I have of our stores are franchise owned, so one facilities manager and one region with our goal is always to minimize costs for a facilities tech. That is it. There are three of our franchisees and save them as much us across the whole country. We have 180 money as possible. My team’s goal is to class corporate restaurants. facilitate and simplify all phases associated We find that a lot of service vendors with the build-out process. That includes don’t understand the difference between negotiating pricing for big ticket equipment retail and restaurants. They think it’s just items directly with manufacturers, so our commercial, so they can go in and do it. franchisees can save money by avoiding But that’s not necessarily true. It’s trying to unwanted mark ups. Whenever possible, get through that mindset; trying to figure having franchisees order material/products out how that discussion happens, and then directly from the manufacturer to avoid making it happen. mark-up upon mark-up. So, everything on my to-do list is Some of our older stores now require always with how can we make this better? equipment repairs; we are working on How can we make processes better? How establishing solid preventative mainte- can we make relationships better? nance and repair programs for our stores. Whoever corporate uses, our franchisees General Shales’ Henning: When building mostly follow suit so it’s important we and construction started declining a few create solid systems that franchisees can years ago, General Shale had already follow and successfully implement in their started focusing on an outdoor living line of own stores. products, which helped us in the renovation I also oversee the implementation market during these tough times. Today, and execution of our interior sign package

48 COMMERCIAL CONSTRUCTION & RENOVATION — SEPTEMBER : OCTOBER 2015 Specializing in Retail, Restaurant & Commercial Construction

Marco Contractors, Inc. has been planning and building Nationwide Retail, Restaurant and Commercial Construction for over 37 years. Projects include stand-alone stores, strip mall build-outs, banks, hotels, open-remodels and other assorted ground-up projects. Marco Contractors, Inc. is licensed and registered in 50 U.S. states. Our team of experts work closely with architects, project managers and engineers nationwide to meet high standards.

NATIONAL HeAdquArTers wesTerN OffIce cONTAcT 100 Commonwealth Drive 555 California Street samra r. savioz P.O. Box 805 Suite 4925 Director of Business Development Warrendale, PA 15095 San Francisco, CA 94104 Direct: 724.720.9955 T: 724-741-0300 T: 415-659-1816 Cell: 724.272.8797 F: 724-741-0335 F: 415-659-1950 [email protected]

Performance Builds Our Business www.MarcoContractors.com

CIRCLE NO. 26 THE ROAD AHEAD

for a new store opening. Securing relationships with sign and print vendors that understand our interior sign package is vital. Quality assurance is a must. Installation should be as smooth as possible. Finding ways to get best yield for the materials we use will minimize our sign costs. These are just some of the more immediate items on my to do list currently.

Imagilux’s Wilson: We are just coming out of a rebranding. We used to be known as Light Beam – that name reflects earlier fiber optic technology we have patents on, but doesn’t relate as much to our current emphasis on manufacturing LED light panels. We’ve restructured our sales team, with both inside sales and customer service to go along with outside sales focused on building relationships and handling the larger projects that have a longer sales cycle. We also now have our own in-house marketing team, and ability to leverage social media and create content to help show- case all the different ways custom LED panels can be used. We’re working to continue establishing our name with archi- tects, designers and contractors while building awareness of our product and expertise integrating LED panels into interior design, signage, and a really diverse range of custom applications. We’d like to start working with more large retailers, restaurants and hospitality chains as a backlighting specialist – we sell a service as Office Depot/Office Max Settles: My to-do list is helping to much as a product. facilitate the integration of all of the supplies and services as a result It’s a fun challenge for a small U.S. manufacturer and we really of bringing together the Office Depot and Office Max brands over the enjoy providing a great product and customer service. Our to-do list past two years. Most of my bid projects that fall within the construc- is long, but we have fun, too. tion category are currently on hold. We’re in a period of bringing things together and building a clear vision of where we want to go, before we take further action. Surprisingly enough, although our legacy companies are so similar, there are a number of variations in the service programs for construction and facilities. The scope of work or vendors for each company may be different, so we’re being very careful to reevaluate the programs from the ground up before determining what our go forward will be. I work very closely with the facilities team to make sure that we’re really coming up with the program that’s going to be the best fit and help the company be productive and attractive to our customers. We’ve had a lot of refreshes taking place in our stores. A lot of the new builds have been on hold while we try to wrap our hands around what the new store prototype will be. Hopefully within the next several months to a year we’ll be able to kind of ramp back up to the construction projects.

Re-AL’s Regnart: We want to really grow the company. The last five or six years were really challenging as a small- to medi- um-sized firm in California doing all tenant improvement retail. The economy really affected us. We were very fortunate in that we were able to get through all of that, which a lot of our other competi- tors were not able to weather that storm. So now that we’ve got through that and things are picking up, we really want to spend a lot of time growing our company, not just trying to maintain it. We’re excited to do that.

50 COMMERCIAL CONSTRUCTION & RENOVATION — SEPTEMBER : OCTOBER 2015 INTRODUCING

BEHR PRO™ PAINT A complete line of paint designed for professional needs. BEHR® Quality. Professional Performance.

Available @

Learn more. Locate a rep. BEHR.com/propaint

CIRCLE NO. 27 THE ROAD AHEAD

Heidi’s Brooklyn Deli’s Bendicksen- I want to be successful for Marco and Naples: We’ve made a lot of changes. for our clients. It’s important and critical that We were affected by the recession, but it our clients know that we work as a team. That really gave us time to consider where we is why each of our clients is provided with the want to go and how we want to be in the best quality, care and value at Marco. future. A lot of that had to do with switching all of our proteins. Half of our stores have Family Dollar’s Lloyd: Since I’m on the transitioned. The rest are transitioning and design and process team, we are tasked are clean. with having a building that is sustainable. If you don’t know what that means, it It must be maintenance free. We’re always means hormone free, antibiotic free, nitrate looking at new products or new processes free, pastrami made for us in , organic that will make things easier for the gener- cheeses. In addition, we wanted our builds al contractor to build. So that we can get to reflect that mission. We’re certainly not our buildings done in a timelier manner as knowledgeable as we hope to be. Our and, of course, at a lower cost. I think new tile is 40 percent repurposed materials. everybody knows that in construction. It still has the look of our original hardwood Our goal is to build a building that floors in our original 1890 building where we makes the shopping experience for our started. We want to continue down that road customers something they enjoy – a place to be sustainable. they want to come back to shop. Without And we want to make it as simple, customers, there is no retail environment. painless and timely as possible. Being So that’s really what we’re looking at. women in this company, I think relation- When I’m talking to customers, I’m talking ships are really important to us. So we want to external and internal customers, such to create and forge relationships that last as our operations team, our maintenance for a long time with companies we admire, department, and our loss prevention and respect so we don’t have to revisit this on risk management teams. a regular basis. So that’s kind of the big When we look at the design of the vision and where we want to get to. building, we bring all of the teams in to help bring that design to where it not only makes Marco Contractors’ Savioz: As it easier for the building to run, but it makes director of development, my role is quite their jobs easier, too. Do we don’ t have loss broad. I’m working on a lot of things at prevention or risk management issues. Marco, which include driving new leads, For example, we just changed all of our maintaining existing accounts, marketing exterior lighting to LED lighting, which was and business development. Our business a long process. We like to test things before is fast paced and challenging as we are we make big changes so that everything focused on excellence. works right. By doing that, we’ve created a Marco has been successfully building retail, restaurant and commercial construction friendlier environment. projects for over 37 years. My primary goal is to maintain long-term relationships with Because most of our customer base existing clients and create value for both Marco and our clients to help make a stronger consists of single mothers, we’ve made it team, along with establishing new clients. I ask questions such as... What can we be doing more inviting for them. The stores feel safer better? Are we listening to our clients and how can we improve to achieve high standards? because of the quality of light on the exterior I recently returned from Orlando, Florida where Marco was asked to participate at the of the building. So, we on the design team Chipotle VIP Partners Conference. Partners such as Chipotle have high expectations, as do a look at all of that as well as the processes lot of our other retail and restaurant clients. It’s really important for GCs to pay close attention for getting that building built. to what their clients needs are so that each project can be completed with 100% satisfac- tion. At Marco, we are committed to the entire process/project/relationship, this includes Whataburger’s Naas: We are a family-owned the development, estimation, project management and the completion for the punch list. My company that started in Corpus Christi, belief is that attention to detail is of the upmost importance on every job. No matter how large Texas in 1950. I joined the company when or small the project may be. they moved to six years ago, Being a woman in this profession adds a certain element that may not be common. and I manage 3rd Party Services. However, women in the field of construction are helping to create a more dynamic people On any given day, my to-do list is very culture. People Culture is done by creating an environment which we have at Marco. long, including everything from sourcing new

52 COMMERCIAL CONSTRUCTION & RENOVATION — SEPTEMBER : OCTOBER 2015 CIRCLE NO. 28 THE ROAD AHEAD

guys inspired and letting them know that work is not above anyone in the entire company. We have had one outside management hire in four years, so it’s very focused on promoting from within. Within our facilities and construction department, most of the people – 75 percent of them – come from within. They may have worked as a crewmember in a restaurant, not necessarily having 20 years of experience. But as you get time in these restaurants and interact with the different de- partments, you learn how to take care of your customers. You can’t always teach that when you come from the outside. The biggest challenge we have is to keep ramping up when we bring people from the outside and teach them our culture. We can teach them how to do tasks all day long, but it’s the culture piece we struggle with. We may hire one person and go through 40 to 50 people just to find the right person. We feel like we can teach anybody anything. We are actively pursuing different venues; military bases, airports are expanding; those are very, very complicated, especially when you do a military base or an airport in another country, even more challenging. We’re doing that all by supporting that from the U.S. We don’t have any international resources right now. We may look into that, but we feel like that the processes we’ve put in place, we just have to vendors, to new contracts and renewals, and trouble-shooting. I work tweak them a little bit in these different countries. We are changing the at building good relationships with my customers in our Operations way business is being done in these other countries where they’re very team. Also, I do a lot of trouble shooting with our vendors. I work to regimented. We go in, we talk to them about our vision and what we find better ways to resolve situations. want to accomplish. And it’s very unique to see it kind of change. I’m trying constantly to improve things – to make them more Things that we were told by different consultants, you can’t do efficient and successful, not just for Whataburger, but for our that in this country; you can’t do that in this country. We’re doing vendors, too. A very important part of my job is dealing with vendors it. We’re doing it very well. So I see that starting to ramp up and – building good business partnerships. When I have a question or a getting the team ready for that I think is going to be a huge challenge problem, they’re right there for us. for us this year. I think we’re ready but it’s just – it’s a lot bigger than 200 restaurants per year. We have most of our in house facilities McIntosh Group’s MacCannell: My to-do list involves getting out people. We have 85 technicians so we do about 47 percent of all of there and meeting people, whether it’s architects, retailers, restau- rants, hospitality, etc. That’s the biggest part of my job. It’s what sets me apart. Put me in a room full of strangers and I will work the room. I love to network because you never know whom you’re going meet. It could be an architect or a vendor or your next client.

Chipotle’s Roberts: My to-do list is building. We are building 10 to 13 percent more restaurants every year, just over 200 a year right now inclusive of additional brands. We’re trying to change the way people think about meat and that goes outside of Chipotle and includes other brands. Up until two months ago, we were plan- ning our first Chipotle development conference. It was a year or so in the making. We had just over 2,000 vendors that we work with and we invited 500 of them. It was a very exclusive event. We did it so that we could bring in that partnership component and make people understand that it’s going take both of us to get to where we want to be all across the world. We’re developing in five dif- ferent countries right now, so I spend a lot of time on the road. I travel between 40 and 45 weeks a year. I have about 185 people working for me. The biggest thing is keeping people inspired – vendors, our partners and the people that work for us every day. Our average person has been with us eight years. Our oldest is 17 years. Keeping these

54 COMMERCIAL CONSTRUCTION & RENOVATION — SEPTEMBER : OCTOBER 2015 CIRCLE NO. 29 THE ROAD AHEAD

our work in house right now as opposed to outsourcing, except for that company who says, Made in America. There may be dollars and construction related tile jobs, flooring, things like that. cents attached to the Made in America factor, but there’s also dollars and cents tied to time spent in transit or items that come in broken AC Tech’s Czarra: I could easily go around the entire room and feed off pieces and need to be resent from sourcing overseas. all the wonderful ideas here. At the top of my “To-Do” list is dealing with the “Bubba Effect” – in myself, in my company and in the construction Sargenti Architects’ Gifford: We’ve recently opened two additional industry as a whole. There is always a built-in resistance to change. And to offices – Philadelphia and L.A. We opened the L.A. office about a year some extent, that is a good thing. But there comes a point when sticking to and a half ago, so my main focus is growing that office, finding staff a technology or a system or a way of doing things simply because “that’s and building our brand in California as well as across the country. the way it’s always been done” becomes counterproductive and creates We have a design department that has slowly been growing over a higher level of risk. The construction industry is in transition. We’re all in the past few years, participating in design and branding competitions. We transition. New green construction products are being introduced. New also started offering construction management services to our clients. industry standards are being adopted. There’s a greater emphasis on Fast We’ve been growing quickly, so it’s really about building those pieces Track building processes than there has ever been before. All of these together, while maintaining the relationships we have already built. We demand the development of new processes in the way we bring all these have over 100 employees whose main focus is to service our clients. together to meet performance specifications. Overcoming the Bubba Effect is a top priority. It’s a risk management strategy as the industry Retail Maintenance’s Buhay: Let’s start with what we did com- moves forward. How do we introduce innovation and manage change? plete. I started in this position a year and a half ago. Since I’ve come That’s why next on my “To-Do” list is content marketing. Sure, on board, we’ve implemented a proprietary software system that it helps with our branding. But it also helps educate and support our was designed for our company. We built a website designed around existing and potential customers. Technical support cannot be allowed our software abilities, completed a booth design, and attending trade to fall by the wayside. It’s a critical component of any product. We have shows. What we are focused on is our service, expanding our busi- to find better and more cost-effective means of spreading the word on ness while still providing the service that our clients are accustom to. new techniques, new products, and new methods. There’s a science We’ve grown to the point where we now need to move and behind industry standards. But science and standards often conflict expand our office space, which is very exciting, we’ll be moving this with budget line items. How does one convey the Big Picture? year. Our to do list and goals if you will, is to double the business. I love Finally, as a “Momma” in a “Bubba” world, how do I foster and my position and the people I work with, we have the same goals. Our attract the next generation into our company and the industry. We have customers are key and we want to continue to exceed their expecta- a brain trust in our company that is 30-years old. That’s 30 years of tions regardless of our growth, maintain the same level of service. hands-on field experience per individual. That is not easily replaceable. And that’s not a problem unique to our company. How are we going to Academy Sports’ Lindsay: I started with Academy over 19 years transfer these skills and experience? I think about this a lot. ago but my primary focus for the last four years has been developing our Remodel Program for existing locations. The priorities on my Chatham’s Lawrence: At Chatham, we believe very strongly in to-do List are constantly changing as the program evolves. Although Made in America. Whether we’re sourcing carpet from Georgia or searching for new ways to condense our project schedules and low- case goods from Mississippi it’s all about Made in America. ering construction costs will always remain at the top of my priority It would be easier to go overseas. There are arguments to be list, one of my largest on-going challenges is continuing to find new had for whichever way you choose to source. There really isn’t a right products, services and processes that will help minimize the impact or a wrong way. Our company feels very strongly about continuing to the “remodel” has on “my customer.” The store remains completely build relationships and being the customer for that entrepreneur and operational during a remodel. CCR

56 COMMERCIAL CONSTRUCTION & RENOVATION — SEPTEMBER : OCTOBER 2015 »CCRS 2016 SPONSOR CIRCLE NO. 30 THE ROAD AHEAD

Let's get it started Retreat kicks off with dinner at a Denver staple

They say you cannot get out of Denver without trying one of the many great steak- houses the city has to offer. One of the city’s most talked about haunts is Guard and Grace, named after the chef’s daughter. To help get the 2015 Women in Commer- cial Construction & Facilities Retreat started, attendees took over a private room in the 9,000-square-foot space in the heart of downtown to talk shop and prepare for the activities ahead. The dinner was the first part of the Women in Commercial Construction & Facilities Retreat, held at The Hotel Monaco in Denver, Aug. 6–9.

Raising the level of cool Dinner helps attendees unwind, prepare for Day 2

Tom and Diane Coohill love company. So, when attendees of the 2015 Women in Commercial Construction & Facilities Retreat were looking for a place to set- tle in and talk about their indoor skydiving experience, the Coohill’s were happy to oblige. Located in Denver’s hip, lower downtown area, Coohills Restaurant and Bar was the perfect spot to end the Day 1 activities. The uniquely modern interior, designed by award-winning architects Semple Brown, helped set the tone for an evening of networking and storytelling. The dinner was part of the Women’s Retreat, held at The Hotel Monaco in Denver, Aug. 6–9.

58 COMMERCIAL CONSTRUCTION & RENOVATION — SEPTEMBER : OCTOBER 2015 »CCRS 2016 SPONSOR CIRCLE NO. 31 THE ROAD AHEAD Natural Beauty for Hold on. Hold tight. And fly Commercial Projects You think you can fly, right? Everybody does. Come on, admit it. If you run into any of the attendees of the 2015 Women in Commercial Construction & Facil- ities Retreat in Denver, they’re going to say yes, they can fly. That’s because, thanks to the iFLY Indoor SkyDiving facility, they now can officially cross the “Skydiving” box off their bucket lists. The iFLY experience helped attendees experience the true free fall conditions without actually having to jump out of an airplane (you can petition us for future Retreats). The networking exercise was part of the Women’s Retreat, held at The Hotel Monaco in Denver, Aug. 6–9.

Goin’ all country General Shale o ers Diversity and + = Night to remember Design for Unlimited Creativity Were you there when Kenny Chesney and Jason Aldean decided to take their talents to Denver’s Sports Authority Field at Mile High? Come on all you 2015 For more than 85 years, General Shale has served as the Women in Commercial Construction & Facilities Retreat attendees – give it your premier supplier of building products for a variety of commercial, best country yell. Chesney’s “Big Revival Tour” and Aldean’s “Burn It Down Tour” institutional and architectural projects. We o er a comprehensive (along with ) served as the perfect send off for attendees of the product line that includes architectural brick, Arriscraft stone, thin Women’s, which was held at The Hotel Monaco in Denver Aug. 6–9. masonry, landscaping, concrete block, outdoor living products and other building materials.

60 COMMERCIAL CONSTRUCTION & RENOVATION — SEPTEMBER : OCTOBER 2015 www.generalshale.com | 800-414-4661

GeneralShale-CCR-Sept2015-FP.indd 1 10/1/2015 2:18:42 PM